Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Mr Barry Gardiner, on 24 January (HC Deb, 1806W), and in the event that the current health-based ban on the importation of wild birds into the European Union is repealed or amended, whether they would press for a permanent ban to continue on the conservation and welfare grounds referred to in the Prime Minister's letter to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds of30 November 2006.

Lord Rooker: As indicated in the Prime Minister's letter, the primary reason for the ban on the trade on the importation of wild birds is concern about the potential it has to spread avianflu and other diseases. The trade can, if managed unsustainably, also damage wild populations. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, to which the UK and EU member states are parties, has arrangements that aim to regulate trade in some endangered wild birds so as not to be detrimental to their survival in the wild. Before agreeing to any ban on conservation grounds we would need to first consider the effectiveness of those controls. We could not press for a ban on welfare grounds, as this would not comply with World Trade Organisation agreements.

Lord Rooker: Within the area around the infected premises in Suffolk there will be enhanced levels of surveillance. Defra, along with our delivery partners, will be patrolling the sites surrounding the infected premises.
	Elsewhere, we will continue to pursue our wild bird surveillance programme which is targeted to those areas likely to be at greatest risk. We are aware of30 key waterbird locations in Suffolk—estuaries, marshes and so on. Twelve of these locations are within20 kilometres of the infected premises, of which 10 are patrolled regularly as part of the programme. Six of those sites have been patrolled over 100 times since the patrol programme began in early November 2006.
	Wild bird droppings are not routinely tested and there are no plans to do so.

Lord Rooker: The PRECIS model is now used in numerous government and academic institutions around the world. The period 2004-05 saw a focus on collaboration among countries in neighbouring regions of the world. Such collaborations now exist in South America and south Asia and scientists are working towards a similar collaboration in central Asia.
	Since 2003, PRECIS workshops have been held in the UK, Cuba, Bhutan, Brazil, India, Turkey, Argentina, Belize, Ghana and Malaysia. Over 220 researchers from over 50 countries have been trained through PRECIS workshops.
	There is ongoing support for this process. Defra funds the development of the Hadley Centre's regional climate model and the Department for International Development funds the personal computer version of the Hadley Centre's regional climate model Additionally, the United Nations development programme funds support for training materials relevant to PRECIS, for experts in developing countries.

Lord Rooker: The Government do not make annual estimates of world greenhouse gas emissions. The International Energy Agency (IEA) publishes annually global emissions data for carbon dioxide (CO2) from fossil fuel consumption.
	In 2004, the most recent year for which data are available from the IEA, the estimated emissions from this source were about 26.6 billion tonnes of CO2, including international shipping and aviation.
	Detailed estimates for 2000 for all greenhouse gases by country and sector are collated by theWorld Resources Institute and published on its website.

Lord Rooker: The table below shows greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from food production by category included in the UK GHG inventory for 2005, in million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. This is the most recent year for which data are available.
	The data on emissions from fuel combustion include forestry operations and food production. Emissions from energy use by the food anddrink industry (for example, emissions from the processing of raw ingredients into packaged, canned or frozen products), and emissions from the manufacture of fertilizer, are included in the inventory with industrial emissions, but these are not separately identified.
	Emissions outside the UK from the production of food imported to the UK are excluded in the UK inventory. The emissions are reported in accordance with internationally agreed guidelines. Statistics for carbon dioxide (CO2) indicators for food transportation are available on the Defra website.
	The most recent estimates show that CO2 emissions from food transport, including emissions from overseas transport, increased by 4 per cent between 2002 and 2004. The impacts of food transport are highly dependent on the mode of transport used: GHG emissions per tonne carriedare much higher for air transport than for sea transport.
	
		
			 2005 emissions (million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent) 
			 Category Carbon dioxide Methane Nitrous oxide Total 
			 Combustion of fossil fuels 
			 Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing: Stationary combustion 0.48 0.04  0.51 
			 Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing: Emissions from off-road machinery 3.96  0.48 4.44 
			  
			 Enteric fermentation and manure management 
			 Cattle (enteric fermentation and manure management)  13.82  13.82 
			 Sheep (enteric fermentation and manure management)  3.56  3.56 
			 Other animals (enteric fermentation and manure management)  1.06  1.06 
			 Manure management nitrous oxide emissions   1.32 1.32 
			  
			 Fertilizer use 
			 Agricultural Soils   25.12 25.12 
			  
			 Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry 
			 Cropland—changes in non-forest biomass due to yield improvements, and lowland drainage 0.55   0.55 
			 Cropland and Grassland—application of lime 0.73   0.73 
			 Land converted to cropland or grassland—changes to soil carbon and biomass stocks due to change of land use, and emissions from biomass burning from forest conversion 5.68   5.68 
			  
			 Total56.80

Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Questions referred to asked my predecessor to comment on aspects of an individual case that are a matter for the police and the courts, not for Government Ministers. I understand that the documents referred to were the subject of a court order made in the course of a criminal prosecution. Following the House of Lords judgment in the case of Taylor and Others v Director of the Serious Fraud Office and Others, mentioned by my predecessor, a person who provides information to the police in confidence is guaranteed immunity from suit in respect of that information. Under the circumstances, and having particular regard to the House of Lords judgment, it would not be appropriate for me to take any further action, particularly given the considerable passage of time since the events in question.

Lord Rooker: Our agencies deliver a range of services to the department, which are supported by Defra funding from various budgets. These services include surveillance, research and emergency response capability that cover a number of specialist areas including virology. The department does not allocate a set amount of funding specifically to fund virologists; rather it is the responsibility ofthe agencies to ensure that an adequate service is provided.
	Information on planned agency expenditure is set out in the department's estimates for the coming year, and details of actual expenditure are available in the annual report and accounts published by each agency after the end of the financial year.
	The majority of Defra funding into the field of virology supports the work of the Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA), which focuses on animal health. Defra funding to support the VLA over the past five years is set out below:
	
		
			 2002-03 £79.694 million 
			 2003-04 £87.812 million 
			 2004-05 £84.963million 
			 2005-06 £97.181 million 
			 2006-07 £95.500 million (planned expenditure) 
		
	
	Defra also provides funding for plant and fish virology at the Central Science Laboratory and the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science respectively.
	Over the next five to six years Defra, BBSRC and the Department for Trade and Industry will be working in partnership to co-fund a £120 million project to build a new virology facility based at the Pirbright Laboratory.

Lord Rooker: Information on the number of virologists employed by Defra (broken down by agency, qualification and location) is set out in the table below:
	
		
			 Agency Location PHD BSC MSC Technician Total 
			 Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science Weymouth 5   9 14 
			 Central Science Laboratory York 3  12  15 
			 Veterinary Medicines Direcorate Weybridge 5 1   6 
			 Veterinary Laboratories Agency(VLA)1 Weybridge 84 
			 1 Staff qualifications are not kept centrally at the VLA and there would be a disproportionate cost involved in obtaining this information for virologists. That said, they include postgraduates, graduates, three clinical veterinarians and two honorary university professors, and range from world experts in their field to those working in a technical capacity at the laboratory bench.

Lord Davies of Oldham: The Government published an updated National Asset Register on the 30 January 2007. This itemises all assets owned by central government with a value above of £1 million. The National Asset Register is available on theHM Treasury website at www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/Documents/Public_Spending_and_Services/National _Asset_Register/pss_nar_ 2007 index.cfm

Baroness Amos: The UK has supported a number of interventions to tackle AIDS in Angola over the past three years, through the bilateral programme managed by the Department for International Development. This has included support for the establishment of voluntary counselling and testing centres, raising awareness through radio programmes, social marketing of condoms, study tours and institutional strengthening of the National AIDS Commission Secretariat.
	The UK's bilateral contribution to programmes directly focused on AIDS in Angola has steadily grown, from £200,000 in the financial year 2003-4, to £422,970 in 2004-5, to £1,363,232 in 2005-6. In 2006-7, we expect to have given a further £1.1 million out of an overall bilateral programme of £5 million.
	We have also contributed £18 million from bilateral funds for a UNICEF Southern Africa programme to protect orphans and vulnerable children from AIDS. In the first year of the programme (2006-07)US$1.4 million was allocated to Angola.
	The UK is also a major global contributor to the principle multilateral organisations that are supporting Angola's response to AIDS: the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM), the World Bank and the European Commission (EC). GFATM has a US$27.7 million programme on AIDS in Angola, of which US$12.4 million has been allocated since October 2005. The UK is a major supporter of GFATM, with commitments of £100 million in each of 2006 and 2007.
	The World Bank is supporting a joint donor-government programme to address AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis programme in Angola, for which it has made available a grant of US$ 21 million. The UK contributed 13.2 per cent of funds to IDA (International Development Association—the World Bank's concessional lending Arm, which gives loans and grants to the world's poorest Countries).
	In Angola, the EC is supporting the health sector as a whole, including 2.9 million euro for improving the use and management of blood in public health centres. The EC has also approved two new contracts with NGOs to minimise HIV transmission and the impact of AIDS in rural provinces of Angola, worth some 4.85 million euro. The UK's imputed share of EC funding is 17.4 per cent.

Baroness Amos: The UK no longer has a bilateral programme in Botswana. The Government's policy on middle-income countries prioritises 10 per cent of our bilateral aid to large middle-income countries with a high proportion of poor people; highly indebted middle-income countries; and middle-income countries that are vulnerable to falling back to low-income status. Botswana currently falls into none of these categories and as such no longer benefits from a bilateral aid programme with DfID.
	Botswana does, however, benefit from UK assistance through both regional and multilateral channels. We have committed £18 million from bilateral funds managed by DfID for a UNICEF southern Africa programme to protect orphans and vulnerable children from AIDS. In the first year of the programme (2006-07) US$1.3 million was allocated to Botswana.
	We also provide £4 million support to the innovative multi-media Soul City edutainment regional programme in southern Africa. This 2003-07 programme reaches eight countries, including Botswana.
	From 2002-06, we supported a £7.65 million regional programme implemented by the Southern African Development Community (SADC). This had components in Botswana, where the programme supported social marketing of condoms, strengthening the National AIDS Commission and work to prevent HIV transmission at cross-border sites.
	The UK is also a major global contributor to the principle multilateral organisations that are supporting Botswana's response to AIDS: the global fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria (GFATM), the World Bank and the European Commission (EC). GFATM has a programme of over US $18.5 million on AIDS in Botswana, of which over US $9 million hasbeen allocated since October 2005. The UK is amajor supporter of GFATM, with commitments of £100 million in each of 2006 and 2007.
	The EC contributes to Botswana's response to AIDS with €50.26 million towards the Education Sector Budget Support Programme (2006-09) which includes a focus on HIV prevention in schools. In addition, the EC supports regional programmes which underpin Botswana's response. These include €3.1 million for ongoing regional support to SADC's AIDS work, and €4.5 million towards the "Circles of Support" regional programme supporting orphans and other children made vulnerable by AIDS. The UK's imputed share of EC funding is 17.4 per cent.

Baroness Ashton of Upholland: The latest information taken from the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal and Court of Appeal's electronic databases states that the number of appeals received by the Court of Appeal, Civil Division, as a result of appeals against decisions made by Immigration Adjudicators/Immigration judges in each calendar year during the period 2002-06 were:
	
		
			 Calendar Year Number of appeals decided by Immigration Adjudicators/Immigration Judges Number of appeals from IAT/AIT granted permission to proceed to the Court of Appeal. 
			 2002 84,259 82 
			 2003 108,348 108 
			 2004 109,220 154 
			 2005 100,825 254 
			 2006 167,219 342

Lord Triesman: Our posts overseas are not generally responsible for arranging the programmes of visiting parliamentarians. Where posts havethe resources to facilitate meetings for visiting parliamentarians, no charge is made.
	Where resources allow the use of official transport by parliamentarians, our posts recover the full economic cost. Information on receipts is not held centrally and could not be obtained without incurring disproportionate cost.
	Visiting parliamentarians meet the costs of the hire of private drivers.

Lord Triesman: We have no plans to introduce a free programme arranging service, or to arrange transport at no cost to visiting parliamentarians.
	In many cases our posts provide appropriate contact details and in some cases are able to facilitate meetings. There is no charge for this, but they do not have the resources to arrange programmes.
	Posts make no charge for providing the details of local private car hire companies. The cost of private cars and private drivers falls to the visiting parliamentarian.

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they intend to introduce legislation to amend the Criminal Justice Act 1991 so as to permit prisoners liable for removal to have their cases reviewed by the Parole Board in the same way as other long-term prisoners, in accordance with the reasons given for granting a declaration of incompatibility under Section 4 of the Human Rights Act 1998, in R (on the application of Clift) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (2006) UKHL54.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: One of the four principal objectives for this franchise is "to seek to accommodate current and anticipated future growth in passenger demand". This objective is stated in the consultation document for the InterCity East Coast franchise replacement, and is available in the House of Commons Library and on the Department for Transport website. Bidders will be required to address this and other franchise objectives when submitting their bids.
	Providing sufficient capacity at peak times will be a significant challenge for bidders, and they will be directed to the ongoing work of Network Rail's East Coast Main Line route utilisation strategy (RUS)that is specifically addressing this issue. They will also be required to co-operate with the emerging recommendations from the RUS during the course of the franchise.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: Bidders will be advised of the proposed electrification scheme at Hambleton between the East Coast Main Line and westwards towards Leeds via Micklefield. They will be required to co-operate with Network Rail to determine the feasibility of such a scheme.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: In its invitation to tender for the Greater Western franchise, the former Strategic Rail Authority specified a minimum train service pattern. Bidders were required to form their own views of existing and future demand, and to respond with proposals, including rolling-stock deployment, to meet this demand. Since the revised timetable was introduced in December 2006, First Great Western (FGW) has added three services; adjustments of this scale are routine at a time of major timetable change.

Lord Rooker: The Discovering Lost Ways project is about establishing what ways already exist not creating new ones. However, in recognition of this, Natural England will be looking actively at the role that rights-of-way improvement plans and local access forums could play in the process of translating "lost ways" research into useful and enjoyable walking, cycling and riding routes on the ground.
	As part of this appraisal, Natural England will also look at the value for money of different approaches, including comparison with existing ways of improving the rights of way network.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Secretary of State for Transport had engagements in England on the18 January before travelling to France.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) is carrying out a full investigation into the causes of the serious structural failure and flooding of the container vessel MSC "Napoli". The scope of the investigation will not be extended to investigate the decision on a place of refuge and the ensuing salvage operation.
	I refer the noble Baroness to the oral Statement made to the House by my honourable friend the Minister of State for Transport on Thursday 1 February 2007 [Official Report, Commons, cols 376-78].